Maigo in Hyogo: January/February ’11
Where in Hyogo can these precocious primates be found?
Leave your answer in the comment box below…
For past issues of Maigo in Hyogo, click here
Where in Hyogo can these precocious primates be found?
Leave your answer in the comment box below…
For past issues of Maigo in Hyogo, click here
It’s the dead of winter here in Hyogo, and you all know what that means: influenza! Teaching is one of the absolute worst professions to be in come flu season, as teachers are surrounded by sniffling, coughing, plaguebearing students. I usually interact with between 140 and 200 students a day, and with the added strain of capering back and forth like a dancing monkey for their edutainment, my immune system can always use a boost. So aside from eating a sack of mikans every day, what’s a health-conscious ALT to do?
The owner of Basin Street, Mr. Tachihiko Kawasaki, once said during a concert that he didn’t really like the song after which he named his bar. “It’s too downbeat,†he said. “I wanted to name the bar after ‘Satin Doll,’ but there’s already a Satin Doll in Kobe.†He may be dissatisfied with the name, but he’s very satisfied with his job. He gets to own the bar, play guitar and drums, and hang out with jazz musicians all the time. If this is what a mid-life crisis gets you, sign me up.
Japan’s arch nemesis, North Korea, was very busy in 2010. Two major engagements with South Korea produced numerous deaths and raised regional and world tensions to levels not seen in many years. Japan has a long and complicated history with both Koreas that affects everyone living here, so it is worthwhile to examine the “North Korea problem†closer.
These hills are alive with a million flowers…
With the season changing, you may have noticed certain things on your commute to school or had them pointed out to you by your Japanese friends or coworkers. What I’m talking about is Nature – which is pretty hard to miss when you live in a country whose culture respects and celebrates nature with all four seasons. Some of you HS ALTs had the pleasure (or pain) of reading a selected few student essays on “Japanese Strong Points.â€
The goal of the Omiai Speed Dating Game is to give the students a fun, real-world context in which to practice the target grammar, in this case “X is as ~ as Y,†many times in rapid succession, until they are able to do it naturally and fluidly. This game has the added bonus of provoking non-stop giggling, because it asks the students to search among their classmates for a spouse.
Students write three opinion sentences using the target grammar. In this case I asked the students to make value judgments about school and free time, American food and Japanese food, and love and money.
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Thanks for guessing! This one may be kind of tough, apparently.. if no one gets it by the 15th, we’ll put up another hint!
Hi just found this nice website, though not an ALT would like to chance an answer
Kanzaki-cho, Shiso-shi and surrounding areas?
Pin-pon! Shiso-shi it is. How did you know?